Shenendehowa baseball aims for state title

HALFMOON, N.Y. – Shenendehowa High School has the top-ranked baseball team in the state, and the Plainsmen have a shot to capture the program’s first state title.

A baseball manager at any level will say pitching is what it takes to win a championship. The Shen baseball team has three guys who may be able to get the team to the top.

“Aaron Kalish. He just pumps the zone and eats up a lot of innings,” head coach Greg Christodulu said. “Bryan Warzek comes from the left side. He’s just a competitor. He likes to work fast and get after it. And then our sophomore. Ian’s a young pup on the staff, but he pitches like he’s a big time veteran.”

The players have game day regimens.

“I guess I wear the same belt and socks every game and the same undershirts,” Anderson said.

“I have to go to Dunkin’ Donuts every morning, but that’s just me,” Warzek said.

Senior Kalish is the Suburban Council of the Year. He said each member of the pitching trio feeds off the others which has paid dividends this season for the Plainsmen.

“There’s competition in our program, so it helps us compete better as a pitching staff,” he said.

The Plainsmen have a .958 fielding percentage so far this season. The pitchers barely make any errors, and Warzek believes it’s easy for any pitcher to deal when there’s a solid defense behind them.

“Mentally, I focus on winning,” he said. “I mean, whatever it takes I know my team’s gonna do anything and everything they can to win, and I’m gonna do the same for them.”

Anderson recognizes Shen’s stellar player wasn’t produced overnight and hopes the Plainsmen can seal the deal this weekend with a state title.

“It’s been a great season for us so far,” he said. “We’ve put in a lot of work in the off season – winter lifting, our throwing programs. It would mean a lot to see all of our hard work pay off.”

Christodulu has yet to announce a starter, and he’s going to keep quiet until an hour before game time. He said it’s so the players can keep the nerves down and just go out and play baseball.